BILL NUMBER: AB 1039 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE JULY 8, 1999
AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 23, 1999
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 28, 1999
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 8, 1999
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Aroner
FEBRUARY 25, 1999
An act to amend Sections 11320.1, 11322.6, 11322.8, 11322.9,
11324.8, 11325.21, 11325.23, 11454, and 11477.02
11477.02, 18242, 18243, and 18247 of, and
to add Section 11322.95 to, and to repeal Section
18246 of, the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to human
services.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1039, as amended, Aroner. CalWORKs program.
Existing federal law provides for allocation of federal funds
through the federal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)
block grant program to eligible states. Existing law provides for
the CalWORKs program for the allocation of federal funds received
through the TANF program, under which each county provides cash
assistance and other benefits to qualified low-income families.
Existing law requires, as a condition of receipt of aid benefits
under the CalWORKs program, that the recipient participate in certain
welfare-to-work activities, and requires that an adult participant
in a one-parent household shall participate in welfare-to-work
activities for a specified number of hours each week, unless
otherwise exempt.
Under existing law, a parent or caretaker relative is not eligible
to receive aid under the CalWORKs program for a cumulative period of
more than 18 months, or in certain cases, 24 months, after the
individual signs, or refuses, without good cause, to sign a
welfare-to-work plan, unless it is certified by the county that there
is no job currently available for the recipient and the recipient
participates in community service activities.
Existing law provides that counties may provide for community
service activities for individuals who have not completed that period
and who are not employed in unsubsidized employment, sufficient to
meet the required minimum number of hours of participation in
welfare-to-work activities.
This bill would authorize counties to provide subsidized
employment as an alternative to community service activities, subject
to certain conditions.
This bill would require counties to pay an assistance payment to
participants in wage-based employment in an amount equal to the wages
for hours not worked by the participant. This bill would limit that
payment to a period of one month and would be paid if the
participant fails to satisfy the required hours of work in a single
month for reasons constituting good cause.
Existing law requires that any individual who is required to
participate in welfare-to-work activities under the CalWORKs program
must enter into a written welfare-to-work plan with the county
welfare department after assessment, and requires that the plan shall
include the activities and services that will move the individual
into employment.
Existing law provides that an applicant for, or a recipient of,
aid under the CalWORKs program who is dissatisfied with the
provisions of the welfare-to-work plan may seek redress through the
independent assessment process or the state hearing or county
grievance process.
This bill would require that at the time an individual applies for
aid under this chapter, or at the time a recipient's eligibility for
aid is determined, the county shall provide the individual, in
writing and orally as necessary, with certain program information,
including a description of the right of the applicant or recipient to
contest the terms of the welfare-to-work plan.
Existing law requires, as a condition of receiving aid under the
CalWORKs program, that the recipient participate in certain
welfare-to-work activities, but specifies that any student who, at
the time he or she is required to participate is enrolled in any
undergraduate degree or certificate program that leads to employment
may continue in that program for a limited period if he or she is
making satisfactory progress in that program if the county determines
that continuing in the program is likely to lead to self-supporting
employment for that recipient, and the welfare-to-work plan reflects
that determination.
Existing law also requires that if participation in educational or
vocational training, as determined by the number of hours required
for classroom, laboratory, or internship activities, is not at least
32 hours, the county shall require concurrent participation in work
activities.
This bill would revise that requirement to require that the number
of hours required in educational or vocational training include
attendance at or preparation for those activities, and would specify
that preparation time shall be presumed to be 2 hours for each hour
of instruction. The bill would also expand the scope of activities
in which a participant whose educational or training activities do
not meet federal or state participation requirements, which must be
required by the county to meet federal requirements and which may be
required by the county to meet state standards.
This bill would also provide that if an individual is enrolled in
an education or training program at the time he or she is required to
participate in the welfare-to-work activities and the county
determines that his or her welfare-to-work plan should contain other
activities instead of the education or training program, the county
shall notify him or her in writing of its determination and inform
him or her of the right to appeal the decision, and would declare
that provision is declaratory of existing law.
By expanding the duties of counties in the administration of the
welfare-to-work activities under the CalWORKs program this bill would
result in a state-mandated local program.
Existing law requires recipients of benefits under the CalWORKs
program to cooperate with the district attorney in the determination
of paternity for purposes of collecting child support, and if the
parent is determined not to have cooperated, the applicant's or
recipient's family grant is required to be reduced by 25% during the
period of noncooperation and requires that child support services for
the noncooperating individual be suspended.
This bill would include applicants, recipients, and former
recipients with welfare arrearages within the scope of that
requirement.
Existing law authorizes the State Department of Social Services to
approve demonstration projects in up to 3 counties to test models of
child support assurance, and specifies that one of the projects
shall conform to a specified design, and provides for the funding of
the projects from funds continuously appropriated for the CalWORKs
program.
This bill would recast that provision to authorize the approval of
up to 3 child support assurance demonstration projects, and would
eliminate the requirement that one of the projects conform to a
specified design.
Existing law requires the State Department of Social Services to
develop research designs to ensure thorough evaluation of the child
support assurance demonstration projects that include various
factors, including the impact of welfare-to-work participation rates
of custodial parents, CalWORKs participation rates and costs,
paternity and child support order establishment, and other relevant
information.
This bill would recast that requirement and increase the scope of
factors that must be included in the research designs.
Existing law provides that the state share of child support
assurance payments under the child support assurance demonstration
project shall be paid in accordance with the continuously
appropriated funding of the CalWORKs program.
This bill would specify that the State Department of Social
Services, to the extent possible, shall ensure that no funding
streams will be utilized to pay for child support assurance payments
if use of the funding streams would cause participants to be subject
to the limitations imposed on the CalWORKs program that a parent or
caretaker relative shall not be eligible to receive aid for a
cumulative period of more than 18 months after the individual signs,
or refuses, without good cause, to sign a welfare-to-work plan,
unless it is certified by the county that there is no job currently
available for the recipient and the recipient participates in
community service activities.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement, including the creation of a State Mandates Claims Fund
to pay the costs of mandates that do not exceed $1,000,000 statewide
and other procedures for claims whose statewide costs exceed
$1,000,000.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates
determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state,
reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these
statutory provisions.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 11320.1 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
amended to read:
11320.1. Subsequent to the commencement of the receipt of aid
under this chapter, the sequence of employment related activities
required of participants under this article, unless exempted under
Section 11320.3, shall be as follows:
(a) Job search. Recipients shall, and applicants may, at the
option of a county and with the consent of the applicant, receive
orientation to the welfare-to-work program provided under this
article, receive appraisal pursuant to Section 11325.2, and
participate in job search and job club activities provided pursuant
to Section 11325.22.
(b) Assessment. If employment is not found during the period
provided for pursuant to subdivision (a), or at any time the county
determines that participation in job search for the period specified
in subdivision (a) of Section 11325.22 is not likely to lead to
employment, the participant shall be referred to assessment, as
provided for in Section 11325.4. Following assessment, the county
and the participant shall develop a welfare-to-work plan, as
specified in Section 11325.21. The plan shall specify the activities
provided for in Section 11322.6 to which the participant shall be
assigned, and the supportive services, as provided for pursuant to
Section 11323.2, with which the recipient will be provided.
(c) Work activities. A participant who has signed a
welfare-to-work plan pursuant to Section 11325.21 shall participate
in work activities until he or she has received aid for the period
specified in subdivision (a) of Section 11454. If, after the period
specified in paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) of Section 11454, the
participant has not obtained unsubsidized employment, the county may
extend the welfare-to-work plan by up to six months if the county
determines that the extension is likely to lead to unsubsidized
employment or if local unemployment or other conditions in the local
economy are such that employment is not available. If a recipient
has received aid for the period specified in subdivision (a) of
Section 11454 and returns to aid after a break in aid of at least one
month, the county shall determine whether to require the recipient
to participate in welfare-to-work activities or in community service.
(d) Community service and subsidized employment.
(1) If a participant has received aid for the period specified in
subdivision (a) of Section 11454, and the participant has not found
unsubsidized employment sufficient to meet the hours of participation
required by Section 11322.8 and the county has certified that no job
is available for that participant, the participant shall remain
eligible for aid under this chapter only if he or she participates in
community service activities or subsidized employment pursuant to
Section 11322.9 or 11322.95.
(2) The county shall provide community service activities or other
work activities assignments as described in Section 11322.9, and may
offer subsidized employment as described in Section 11322.95.
(3) An individual may participate in community service activities
or a combination of community service activities and subsidized
employment as provided in Section 11322.95 until he or she has
received aid for a total of 60 months.
SEC. 1.1. Section 11322.6 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
amended to read:
11322.6. The welfare-to-work plan developed by the county welfare
department and the participant pursuant to this article shall
provide for welfare-to-work activities. Welfare-to-work activities
may include, but are not limited to, any of the following:
(a) Unsubsidized employment.
(b) Subsidized private sector employment.
(c) Subsidized public sector employment.
(d) Work experience, which means public or private sector work
that shall help provide basic job skills, enhance existing job skills
in a position related to the participant's experience, or provide a
needed community service that will lead to employment. Unpaid work
experience shall be limited to 12 months, unless the county welfare
department and the recipient agree to extend this period by an
amendment to the welfare-to-work plan. The county welfare department
shall review the work experience assignment as appropriate and make
revisions as necessary to ensure that it continues to be consistent
with the participant's plan and effective in preparing the
participant to attain employment.
(e) On-the-job training.
(f) Grant-based on-the-job training, which means public or private
sector employment or on-the-job training in which the recipient's
cash grant, or a portion thereof, or the aid grant savings resulting
from employment, is diverted to the employer as a wage subsidy to
partially or wholly offset the payment of wages to the participant.
Grant-based on-the-job training shall include community service
positions pursuant to Section 11322.9 and subsidized employment
pursuant to Section 11322.95.
(g) Supported work or transitional employment, which means forms
of grant-based on-the-job training in which the recipient's cash
grant, or a portion thereof, or the aid grant savings from
employment, is diverted to an intermediary service provider, to
partially or wholly offset the payment of wages to the participant.
(h) Work-study.
(i) Self-employment.
(j) Community service.
(k) Adult basic education, which shall include reading, writing,
arithmetic, high school proficiency, or general educational
development certificate of instruction, and
English-as-a-second-language. Participants under this subdivision
shall be referred to appropriate service providers that include, but
are not limited to, educational programs operated by school districts
or county offices of education that have contracted with the
Superintendent of Public Instruction to provide services to
participants pursuant to Section 33117.5 of the Education Code.
(l) Job skills training directly related to employment.
(m) Vocational education and training, including, but not limited
to, college and community college education, adult education,
regional occupational centers, and regional occupational programs.
(n) Job search and job readiness assistance, which means providing
the recipient with training to learn job seeking and interviewing
skills, to understand employer expectations, and learn skills
designed to enhance an individual's capacity to move toward
self-sufficiency.
(o) Education directly related to employment.
(p) Satisfactory progress in secondary school or in a course of
study leading to a certificate of general educational development, in
the case of a recipient who has not completed secondary school or
received such a certificate.
(q) Mental health, substance abuse, and domestic violence
services, described in Sections 11325.7 and 11325.8 and Article 7.5
(commencing with Section 11495), that are necessary to obtain and
retain employment.
(r) Other activities necessary to assist an individual in
obtaining unsubsidized employment.
Assignment to an educational activity identified in subdivisions
(k), (m), (o), and (p) shall be limited to those situations in which
the education is needed to become employed. Hours of participation
shall include preparation time as described in subparagraph (C) of
paragraph (3) of subdivision (a) of Section 11325.23.
SEC. 1.5. Section 11322.8 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
amended to read:
11322.8. (a) Unless otherwise exempt, and except as provided in
Section 11322.95, an adult recipient in a one-parent assistance unit
shall participate in welfare-to-work activities for 20 hours each
week beginning January 1, 1998, 26 hours each week beginning July 1,
1998, and 32 hours each week beginning July 1, 1999, and thereafter.
In no event shall the adult recipient participate in welfare-to-work
activities less than the required hours of participation under
Section 407 of the federal Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 607)
and any subsequent amendments thereto, for the entire time period on
aid. A county retains the option to require all recipients or
individual recipients to participate in welfare-to-work activities in
excess of the minimum number of hours specified in this subdivision,
up to 32 hours each week.
(b) Unless otherwise exempt, an adult recipient who is an
unemployed parent, as defined in Section 11201, shall participate in
at least 35 hours of welfare-to-work activities each week that will
meet the required hours of participation under Section 407 of the
federal Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 607) and any subsequent
amendments thereto. However, both parents in a two-parent assistance
unit may contribute to the 35 hours, if provided in federal law as
meeting the federal work participation requirements and if at least
one parent meets the federal one-parent work requirement applicable
on January 1, 1998. To be eligible for federally funded child care
under Article 15.5 (commencing with Section 8350) of Chapter 2 of
Part 6 of the Education Code, both parents shall participate in work
activities that will meet the required hours of participation under
Section 407 of the federal Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 607)
and any subsequent amendments thereto.
SEC. 1.8. Section 11322.9 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
amended to read:
11322.9. (a) In accordance with the requirements of this section:
(1) Counties may provide for community service activities for
individuals who have not completed the period specified in
subdivision (a) of Section 11454 and are not employed in unsubsidized
employment, sufficient to meet the hours of participation required
by Section 11322.8.
(2) Counties shall provide for community service activities for
individuals who have completed the period as specified in subdivision
(a) of Section 11454, who cannot find unsubsidized employment
sufficient to meet the hours of participation required by Section
11322.8, and the county certifies that no job is currently available
to fulfill the hours required by Section 11322.8, and who continue to
meet the financial eligibility criteria for aid under this chapter.
(b) Community service activities shall meet all of the following
criteria:
(1) Be performed in the public and private nonprofit sector.
(2) Provide participants with job skills that can lead to
unsubsidized employment.
(3) Comply with the antidisplacement provisions contained in
Section 11324.6.
(c) Participants in community service activities shall do all of
the following:
(1) Participate in a community service activity for the number of
hours required by Section 11322.8, unless fewer hours of community
service participation are required by federal law.
(2) Participate in other work activities, including those who have
reached the time limits specified in Section 11454, for the number
of hours equal to the difference between the hours of participation
in community service and the number of hours of participation
required under Section 11322.8.
(d) The county plan pursuant to Section 10531 shall include a
component, developed by the county in collaboration with local
private sector employers, local education agencies, county welfare
departments, organized labor, recipients of aid under this chapter,
and government and community-based organizations providing job
training and economic development, in order to identify all of the
following:
(1) Unmet community needs that could be met through community
service activities.
(2) The target population to be served.
(3) Entities responsible for project development, fiscal
administration, and case management services.
(4) The terms of community service activities, that, to the extent
feasible, shall be temporary and transitional, and not permanent.
(5) Supportive efforts, including job search, education, and
training, which shall be provided to participants in community
service activities.
(e) Aid under this chapter for any participant who fails to comply
with the requirements of this section without good cause shall be
reduced in accordance with Section 11327.5.
(f) Child care as a supportive service shall be provided to
participants in community service activities pursuant to Article 15.5
(commencing with Section 8350) of Chapter 2 of Part 6 of the
Education Code, and Section 11323.2. Other supportive services may
be provided by the county at the county's option. However, if the
county does not provide mental health services pursuant to Section
11325.7, the county shall indicate in its county plan under Chapter
1.3 (commencing with Section 10530) how mental health services needed
by participants will be made available during participation in a
community service job.
SEC. 2. Section 11322.95 is added to the Welfare and Institutions
Code, to read:
11322.95. Counties may provide subsidized employment in the
private or public sector after the period specified in subdivision
(a) of Section 11454, as an alternative to community service
activities pursuant to Section 11322.9, subject to the following
conditions:
(a) Wages paid pursuant to this section shall be supplemented by a
stipend of ninety dollars ($90) per month for mandatory payroll
deductions and other work expenses instead of the income disregards
set forth in Section 11451.5. The stipend shall not be considered
income for the purposes of CalWORKs eligibility or benefits.
(b) Subsidized employment assigned after the time limits
specified in Section 11454 shall not exceed one year in duration,
unless a county agrees to extend the time in subsidized employment
after an assessment of the appropriateness of continued
participation.
(c) Participants in subsidized employment shall be allowed to
accrue the same amount of sick leave or family leave per month that
the employer offers to other comparable employees. Hours of sick
leave and family leave authorized by the employer and hours that a
participant cannot work because of employer recognized holidays shall
be counted toward the participants' weekly participation hours under
Section 11322.8.
(d) Participants in subsidized employment shall be considered
employees for all purposes, and shall be compensated at no less than
the higher of the state or federal minimum wage.
(e) Subsidized employment shall consist of a minimum of 24 hours
per week, which may be increased to 32 hours per week at county
option. When the hours of subsidized work result in fewer hours than
those required to be counted toward the federal work participation
rate, counties shall assign other activities authorized under Section
11322.6 until the federal hourly requirements are met. When the
number of hours satisfy the federal standard but are fewer than those
set forth in Section 11322.8, counties may assign other activities
under Section 11322.6 to satisfy the requirement of that section,
consistent with the federal Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (Chapter
8 (commencing with Section 201) of Title 29 of the United States
Code).
(f) Counties shall arrange for participants in subsidized
employment to apply and qualify for the earned income tax credit and
its advance payment option.
(g) (1) Participants in subsidized employment who fail to satisfy
the required hours of work in a single month for reasons constituting
good cause, as specified in subdivision (f) of Section 11320.3,
shall be paid an assistance payment in an amount equal to the wages
not received for the hours not worked.
(2) Participants in subsidized employment who fail to satisfy the
required hours of work in two months, counting allowed hours of sick
and family leave, whether or not the failure is due to reasons
constituting good cause, shall be reassigned to community service or
a welfare-to-work activity other than subsidized employment.
(3) In no event shall the failure to meet the hourly work
requirements result in a payment of wages or assistance payments,
including the stipend authorized in subdivision (a), which are less
than the amount paid pursuant to Section 11327.5.
(h) Wages paid to participants pursuant to this section shall be
paid by the employer or an entity other than the county.
(i) Counties may fund the wages for subsidized employment through
any combination of the single allocation to counties, any other funds
or grant diversion. For purposes of this subdivision, "grant
diversion" means public or private sector employment in which the
recipient's grant, or a portion thereof, or the aid grant savings
resulting from employment, is diverted to the employer as a wage
subsidy to partially or wholly offset the payment of wages to the
participant.
(j) Counties using subsidized employment shall monitor the
retention of participants as permanent employees by employers
participating in subsidized employment, and shall cancel the
participation of employers who demonstrate, over a reasonable period
of time, an unwillingness to permanently hire recipients who have
participated in subsidized employment with that employer.
SEC. 3. Section 11324.8 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
amended to read:
11324.8. (a) At the time an individual applies for aid under this
chapter, or at the time a recipient's eligibility for aid is
determined, the county shall do all of the following:
(1) Provide the individual, in writing and orally as necessary,
with at least the following program information:
(A) A general description of the education, employment, and
training opportunities and the supportive services available,
including transitional benefits.
(B) A description of the exemptions from required participation
provided under this article and the consequences of a refusal to
participate in program components, if not exempt.
(C) A description of the responsibility of the participant to
cooperate in establishing paternity and enforcing child support
obligations, and to assist individuals in establishing paternity and
obtaining child support as a condition of eligibility.
(D) A description of the right to contest the terms of a
welfare-to-work plan, as described in subdivision (d).
(2) Determine whether the individual is required to participate in
the program provided under this article.
(b) At the time an individual is required to participate pursuant
to this article, he or she shall receive a written preliminary
determination that he or she is a member of a targeted group, for
purposes of any applicable and operative federal Targeted Jobs Tax
Credit and California Jobs Tax Credit.
(c) Persons not required to participate may volunteer to
participate.
(d) An applicant for, or a recipient of, aid who is dissatisfied
with the provisions of the welfare-to-work plan may seek redress
through the independent assessment process, as described in
subdivision (c) of Section 11325.4 or the state hearing or county
grievance process, as described in Section 11327.8.
SEC. 4. Section 11325.21 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
amended to read:
11325.21. (a) Any individual who is required to participate in
welfare-to-work activities pursuant to this article shall enter into
a written welfare-to-work plan with the county welfare department
after assessment as required by subdivision (b) of Section 11320.1,
except as provided for in Section 11320.3. The plan shall include
the activities and services that will move the individual into
employment.
(b) The county shall allow the participant three working days
after completion of the plan or subsequent amendments to the plan in
which to evaluate and request changes to the terms of the plan.
(c) The plan shall be written in clear and understandable
language, and have a simple and easy-to-read format.
(d) The plan shall contain at least all of the following general
information:
(1) A general description of the program provided for in this
article, including available program components and supportive
services.
(2) A general description of the rights, duties, and
responsibilities of program participants, including a list of the
exemptions from the required participation under this article, the
consequences of a refusal to participate in program components, and
criteria for successful completion of the program.
(3) A description of the grace period required in paragraph (5) of
subdivision (b) of Section 11325.22 and of the right to evaluate and
request changes in the terms of the plan within three working days,
as provided in subdivision (b).
(4) A description of the right to contest the terms of the
welfare-to-work plan through an independent assessment, as provided
in Section 11325.4, and by the state hearing or county grievance
process, as described in Section 11327.8.
(e) The plan shall specify, and shall be amended to reflect
changes in, the participant's welfare-to-work activity, a description
of services to be provided in accordance with Sections 11322.6, and
11322.8 as needed, and specific requirements for successful
completion of assigned activities including required hours of
participation.
The plan shall also include a general description of supportive
services pursuant to Section 11323.2 that are to be provided as
necessary for the participant to complete assigned program
activities.
(f) Any assignment to a program component shall be reflected in
the plan or an amendment to the plan. The participant shall maintain
satisfactory progress toward employment through the methods set
forth in the plan, and the county shall provide the services pursuant
to Section 11323.2.
(g) This section shall not apply to individuals subject to Article
3.5 (commencing with Section 11331) during the time that article is
operative.
SEC. 5. Section 11325.23 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
amended to read:
11325.23. (a) (1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), any
student who, at the time he or she is required to participate under
this article pursuant to Section 11320.3, is enrolled in any
undergraduate degree or certificate program that leads to employment
may continue in that program within the time period specified in
subdivisions (a) and (d) of Section 11454 if he or she is making
satisfactory progress in that program, the county determines that
continuing in the program is likely to lead to self-supporting
employment for that recipient, and the welfare-to-work plan reflects
that determination.
(2) Any individual who possesses a baccalaureate degree shall not
be eligible to participate under this section unless the individual
is pursuing a California regular classroom teaching credential in a
college or university with an approved teacher credential preparation
program.
(3) (A) Subject to the limitation provided in subdivision (f), a
program shall be determined to lead to employment if it is on a list
of programs that the county welfare department and local education
agencies or providers agree lead to employment. The list shall be
agreed to annually, with the first list completed no later than
January 31, 1998. By January 1, 2000, all educational providers
shall report data regarding programs on the list for the purposes of
the report card established under Section 15037.1 of the Unemployment
Insurance Code for the programs to remain on the list.
(B) For students not in a program on the list prepared under
subparagraph (A), the county shall determine if the program leads to
employment. The recipient shall be allowed to continue in the
program within the time period specified in subdivisions (a) and (d)
of Section 11454 if the recipient demonstrates to the county that the
program will lead to self-supporting employment for that recipient
and the documentation is included in the welfare-to-work plan.
(C) If participation in educational or vocational training, as
determined by the number of hours required for attendance at or
preparation for classroom, laboratory, or internship activities, is
not at least 32 hours, the county shall require concurrent
participation in work activities pursuant to subdivisions (a) to (r),
inclusive, of Section 11322.6 and Section 11325.22. Preparation
time shall be presumed to be two hours of study for each hour of
instruction.
(D) If an individual is enrolled in an education or training
program at the time he or she is required to participate under this
article and the county determines that the individual's
welfare-to-work plan should contain other activities instead of the
education or training program, the county shall notify the individual
in writing of its determination and inform the individual of the
right to appeal the decision pursuant to any available procedure,
including the right to a third party assessment under subdivision (c)
of Section 11325.4. This subdivision is declaratory of existing
law.
(b) Participation in the self-initiated education or vocational
training program shall be reflected in the welfare-to-work plan
required by Section 11325.21. The welfare-to-work plan shall provide
that whenever an individual ceases to participate in, refuses to
attend regularly, or does not maintain satisfactory progress in the
self-initiated program, the individual shall participate under this
article in accordance with Section 11325.22.
(c) Any person whose previously approved self-initiated education
or training program is interrupted for reasons that meet the good
cause criteria specified in subdivision (f) of Section 11320.3 may
resume participation in the same program if the participant
maintained good standing in the program while participating and the
self-initiated program continues to meet the approval criteria. The
county shall adjust the completion date of the program, accounting
for the time of absence to allow the participant a cumulative
timeframe outlined in subdivision (a).
(d) Supportive services reimbursement shall be provided for any
participant in a self-initiated training or education program
approved under this subdivision. This reimbursement shall be
provided if no other source of funding for those costs is available.
Any offset to supportive services payments shall be made in
accordance with subdivision (e) of Section 11323.4.
(e) Any student who, at the time he or she is required to
participate under this article pursuant to Section 11320.3, has been
enrolled and is making satisfactory progress in a degree or
certificate program, but does not meet the criteria set forth in
subdivision (a), shall have until the beginning of the next
educational semester or quarter break to continue his or her
educational program if he or she continues to make satisfactory
progress. At the time
the educational break occurs, the individual is required to
participate pursuant to Section 11320.1. The time spent in the
educational program shall count towards the time limits and community
service requirements established for recipients in Sections 11320.1
and 11454. A recipient not expected to complete the program by the
next break may continue his or her education under the timelines in
subdivision (a), provided he or she transfers at the end of the
current quarter or semester to a program that qualifies under that
subdivision, the county determines that participation is likely to
lead to self-supporting employment of the recipient, and the
welfare-to-work plan reflects that determination.
(f) Any degree, certificate, or vocational program offered by a
private postsecondary training provider shall not be approved under
this section unless the program is either approved or exempted by the
appropriate state regulatory agency and the program is in compliance
with all other provisions of law.
SEC. 6. Section 11454 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
amended to read:
11454. (a) (1) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter and
in paragraph (2), a parent or caretaker relative shall not be
eligible to receive aid for a cumulative period of more than 18
months after the individual signs, or refuses, without good cause, to
sign a welfare-to-work plan, unless it is certified by the county
that there is no job currently available for the recipient and the
recipient participates in community service activities, pursuant to
Section 11322.9, or in subsidized employment pursuant to Section
11322.95.
(2) A parent or caretaker relative recipient who is subject to the
requirements of paragraph (2) of subdivision (c) of Section 10532
shall not be eligible to receive aid under this chapter for a
cumulative period of more than 24 months, unless it is certified by
the county that there is no job currently available for the recipient
and the recipient participates in community service activities
pursuant to Section 11322.9, or in subsidized employment pursuant to
Section 11322.95.
(3) For purposes of this subdivision, a job shall not be
considered to be currently available if a recipient has taken and
continues to take all steps to apply for appropriate positions and
has not refused an offer of employment without good cause.
(4) A parent or caretaker relative recipient to whom paragraph (1)
or (2) applies, who is in a job for less than the number of hours
required by Section 11322.8, and for whom no job is currently
available for the required number of hours, shall remain eligible for
aid under this chapter and shall participate in community service
activities for the additional number of hours necessary to meet the
requirements of Section 11322.8.
(b) A parent or caretaker relative shall not be eligible for aid
under this chapter when he or she has received aid under this chapter
or from any state under the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
program (Part A (commencing with Section 401) of Title IV of the
federal Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 601 et seq.) for a
cumulative total of 60 months.
(c) No month in which aid has been received prior to January 1,
1998, shall be taken into consideration in computing the 18-month,
24-month, or 60-month limitation provided for in subdivision (a) or
(b).
(d) Each county shall adopt criteria for extending the 18-month
limitation prescribed by subdivision (a) for up to six months if the
extension is likely to result in unsubsidized employment or if local
unemployment rates or other conditions in the local economy are such
that employment is not available.
(e) Subdivision (b) shall not be applicable when all parent or
caretaker relatives of the aided child who are living in the home of
the child meet any of the following requirements:
(1) They are 60 years of age or older.
(2) They meet one of the conditions specified in paragraph (4) or
(5) of subdivision (b) of Section 11320.3.
(3) They are not included in the assistance unit.
(4) They are receiving benefits under Section 12200 or Section
12300, State Disability Insurance benefits or Workers' Compensation
Temporary Disability Insurance, if the disability significantly
impairs the recipient's ability to be regularly employed or
participate in welfare-to-work activities.
(5) They are incapable of maintaining employment or participating
in welfare-to-work activities, as determined by the county, based on
the assessment of the individual and the individual has a history of
participation and full cooperation in welfare-to-work activities.
SEC. 7. Section 11477.02 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
amended to read:
11477.02. Prior to referral of any individual or recipient, or
that person's case, to the district attorney for child support
services under Section 11350.1 or 11475.1, the county welfare
department shall determine if an applicant, recipient, or former
recipient with welfare arrearages has good cause for noncooperation,
as set forth in Section 11477.04. If the applicant or recipient
claims a good cause exception at any subsequent time to the county
welfare department or the district attorney, the district attorney
shall suspend child support services until the county welfare
department determines the good cause claim, as set forth in Section
11477.04. If good cause is determined to exist, the district
attorney shall suspend child support services until the applicant or
recipient requests their resumption, and shall take such other
measures as are necessary to protect the applicant or recipient and
the children. If the applicant, recipient, or former recipient with
welfare arrearages is the parent of the child for whom aid is sought
and the parent is found to have not cooperated without good cause as
provided in Section 11477.04, the applicant's or recipient's family
grant shall be reduced by 25 percent for such time as the failure to
cooperate lasts.
SEC. 8. Section 18242 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
amended to read:
18242. (a) Upon application by a county board of supervisors, the
department may approve up to three demonstration projects
in up to three counties to test models of child
support assurance. One of the projects shall conform to the
design contained in Section 18246. The other two
projects shall either test different models of child
support assurance or may test the same model if the two
counties in which that the same
model is tested involve counties with different demographics.
(b) The department may approve joint projects by two or more
counties if both of the following apply:
(1) The equity of access to the project and its related services
is ensured to all participants.
(2) The project includes appropriate operational and fiscal
arrangements between the counties submitting the joint project.
(c) If the department approves a joint project by two or more
counties, that joint project shall constitute one of the projects
authorized by subdivision (a).
(d) It is the intent of the Legislature that the
purpose of the demonstration projects authorized by this article is
to test child support assurance models as alternatives to welfare
under which families with earnings and a child support order receive
a guaranteed child support payment, in lieu of a grant under the
CalWORKs program, from funds continuously appropriated for the
CalWORKs program.
(c)
(e) A county may determine limit
the maximum number of participants
in that county, but not more than five percent of the county CalWORKs
caseload or 8,000 persons, whichever is greater
families that will be permitted to enroll in its child support
assurance demonstration program .
SEC. 9. Section 18243 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
amended to read:
18243. The department shall develop research designs to ensure
thorough evaluations of the child support assurance demonstration
projects that shall include, but not be limited to, the impact of
the project on work participation rates of custodial
parents, household incomes and family well-being, CalWORKs
participation rates and costs, rates of paternity and
child support order establishment, and any other relevant information
the director may require.
SEC. 10. Section 18246 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
repealed.
18246. (a) A child or children shall be eligible to continue to
receive a child support assurance payment under this section only if
the family's income is not more than 150 percent of the federal
poverty level. For family income below the federal poverty level,
the earned income disregard shall be 90 percent. For income between
100 percent and 150 percent of the federal poverty level, the earned
income disregard shall be incrementally decreased until the
assistance benefit reaches zero at 150 percent of the federal poverty
level.
(b) In any month, the child shall receive the greater of the child
support paid by the noncustodial parent or the assured amount as
defined in subdivision (d), less the earned income disregard
specified in subdivision (a). In any month in which the noncustodial
parent pays an amount of support less than the assured amount, the
county shall retain the payment as reimbursement for the assured
amount.
(c) For purposes of this article, the child support assurance
payable to the custodial parent of one or more eligible children
shall be the amount by which the support assurance payment exceeds
the dollar value of the child support, if any, received on behalf of
the family during the month from the noncustodial parent for the
support of any eligible child or children.
(d) The monthly child support assurance payment shall be the sum
of all of the following:
(1) Two hundred fifty dollars ($250) for the first eligible child.
(2) One hundred twenty-five dollars ($125) for the second eligible
child, if any.
(3) Sixty-five dollars ($65) for each subsequent eligible child,
if any.
SEC. 11. Section 18247 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
amended to read:
18247. (a) The state share of child support assurance payments
under this article shall be paid in accordance with Section 15200.
(b) The department shall, to the extent possible, ensure that
no funding streams will be utilized to pay for child support
assurance payments if the use of the funding streams would cause
participants to be subject to the limitations of Section 11454 or any
similar limitation.
(c) The county administrative cost for the operation of a
child support assurance program shall be paid from the county's
allocation provided under Sections 15204.2 and 15204.3.
SEC. 12. It is the intent of the Legislature that the State
Department of Social Services implement the amendments made to
Sections 11320.1, 11322.6, 11322.8, 11322.9, 11324.8, 11325.21,
11325.23, 11454, and 11477.02 of the Welfare and Institutions Code,
by this act, and Section 11322.95 of the Welfare and Institutions
Code, as added by this act, to the extent of funding made available
pursuant to the Budget Act or any other act.
SEC. 9.
SEC. 13. Notwithstanding Section 17610 of the Government
Code, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that this act
contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to local agencies
and school districts for those costs shall be made pursuant to Part
7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division 4 of Title 2 of the
Government Code. If the statewide cost of the claim for
reimbursement does not exceed one million dollars ($1,000,000),
reimbursement shall be made from the State Mandates Claims Fund.